Any time a dish starts with pasta it will be a winner for me and this orzo salad is one of those dishes. Orzo is a small, flat-shaped pasta that looks like a large grain of rice but tastes like pasta (because it is pasta!). Feel free to substitute the orzo for any other small pasta, such as ditalini, elbows, mini farfalle, and mini penne.
I absolutely love this dish as a summer side salad. It’s simple to make, has fresh flavors, and is refreshing. You can also easily double, triple, quadruple, etc. this recipe and bring it to large parties, summer barbeques, or potlucks.
The flavors are versatile that you can pair it with chicken, turkey, fish, and even steak! You can even make extra sauce and use it as a marinade for the meat. Add in some minced garlic, shallots and/or Dijon mustard to this dressing recipe to make it into a delicious marinade.
Orzo Salad with Arugula
Ingredients
Orzo Salad
- 8 oz orzo (usually 1/2 box)
- 2 1/2 cups arugula, packed cups
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 red onion, diced and sauteed
- 1/2 can cannellini beans (15.5 oz total can)
- almonds, sliced
Salad Dressing
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/2 cup EVOO
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp fresh dill
Instructions
Orzo Salad
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Cook orzo according to instructions on box, drain, let cool.
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Dice and sautee 1/2 red onion in EVOO until translucent.
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Halve the grape tomatoes.
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Mix orzo, onion, cannellini beans, and grape tomatoes together.
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Pour 1/2 C of dressing onto the salad and mix.
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Let salad chill in the refrigerator, a few hours to overnight.
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Reserve the remaining 1/4 C of dressing to pour on salad before serving.
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Before serving, add the arugula and remaining dressing to the salad and mix. Top with sliced almonds.
Salad Dressing (makes 3/4 C)
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Juice lemons.
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Rough chop fresh dill.
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Whisk in EVOO to lemon juice.
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Whisk in dill, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
